Project Details
- Developer: Development Victoria
- Type: Infrastructure/Commercial/Residential
- Location: City of Ballarat, Victoria, Australia
- Date: April 2021
- Lifespan: 60 years
- LCA authored by Jonathan Gieselbach of Cerclos and the critical review has been conducted by Tim Grant of Life Cycle Strategies.
Cerclos is proud to be a part of this great initiative and contributed to this project by modelling the life cycle impacts of the new construction and fit-out design and suggesting options to reduce carbon emissions and achieve points as part of the Green Star certification.
The Victorian Government is investing in the future of regional Victoria by establishing a new GovHub in the City of Ballarat. Development Victoria is leading the delivery of the project, in partnership with Regional Development Victoria, the Department of Premier and Cabinet, and the City of Ballarat. City of Ballarat is committed to sustainable development and is aiming for carbon neutral. The Ballarat GovHub was completed in April 2021, with tenants now moving into the building. An official launch was held on 21 April 2021.
- Head Contractor: Kane Nicholson Joint Venture
- ESD/Sustainability: Sam Turner (Aecomm)
- Architect: John Wardle Architects
- Anchor Tenant: VIC government
Project Features
Life Span of Building
For the purposes of this study, a default service life of the building of 60 years has been applied in accordance with the Green Star requirements.
Building Maintenance and Operation
The frequency of materials used for replacement or repair is calculated via the product life spans for various building elements. The frequency of trade staff requirements and maintenance equipment requirements is intrinsically linked to the building component that is being repaired or replaced. For maintenance tasks not related to materials repair or replacement (for example window cleaning which requires no materials added to the building) the frequency is researched, applied to the model and verified.
Embodied Carbon reduction
The project team was responsible for significant upfront emission reduction with the following improvement strategies:
- Use of mass timber in framing, floors and walls
- Timber ceilings
- Recycled brick wall
- 30% Fly-ash as clinquer replacement in concrete mixes
- Construction waste reduction
Results Summary



